Elastic-fluid turbine



Nov. 5, 1929. c. J. LAMB 1,734,216

ELASTIC FLUID TURBINE Filed April 1927 WITNESSES INVENTOR CJ. Lamb ATTORNEY (5.1115 Wa CMQBIM Patented Nov. 5, 1929 UNETED ra'rg era CARL J'. LAMB, OF PHILADELJEHIA, PENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGNOR TO WESTINGHOUSE ELECTRIC & MANUFACTURING COMPANY, A CORPORATION OF PENNSYLVANIA ELASTIC-FLUID TURBINE Applieationffiled April 19, 1927. Serial No. 185,034.

My invention relates to elastic fluid turbine's, and it has for its object to further reduce the time required in starting a turbine after it has been shut down for a time, by providing an improved means of maintaining an even distribution of heat therein.

This invention is an improvement upon the invention described and claimed in my prior application, Serial No. 37,732 filedJu'ne 17, 1925, and assigned to the Westinghouse Electric and Manufacturing Company.

Previous to my prior invention, difficulties were experienced'in starting up a turbine after it has been shut down for a .time, due

to the fact that, in cooling, the rotor and the casing had been warped because of unequal cooling. It was found that the heat flowed upwardly,"causing both the rotor and casing to be bowed upwardly. The result was that, in many cases, ifthe turbine should be started before it had dissipated all of its heat, the high spots of the rotor would contact with the high spots of the casing, causing a rubbing and consequent injury to the parts.

In my prior application, I described a scheme of providing a circulation of gaseous medium through the turbine and distributing the gaseous medium through the interior of the turbine in order to uniformly cool the parts thereof.

My present invention provides a more effective circulation of gaseous medium, and in accordance therewith, I provide means for injecting a stream, or preferably a plurality of streams, of gaseous medium tangentially into the turbine, and thus produce rotary or whirling circulation in the turbine. Such means'is preferably provided in the form of a nozzle, or nozzles, disposed in the casing of the turbine in tangential relation to the aXis of the turbine. This provides a more even distribution of heat and with a smaller quantity of gaseous medium.

Referring now to the drawings for illustration of an embodiment of my invention:

Fig. 1 is a side elevation of a turbine having my invention applied thereto;

Fig. 2 is a section taken on the line II-II of Fig. 1

Fig. 3 is an enlarged detail sectional View showing the nozzle. for injecting gaseous medium into the turbine; and,

Fig. 4 is a diagrammatic view showing an alternative manner of disposing the nozzles gvith respect to the circumference of the turine.

Referring to the drawing in detail, I show a'turbine casing 10, having a rotor 11 disposed therein. At 12, I show a manifold structure connected to a conduit 13, which communicates with any suitable source of gaseous medium, such as compressed air.

Leading from the manifold structure 12 are a number of conduits 14,15, 16, 17, 18 and 19, providing communication between the manifold structure 12 and the nozzles 21, 22, 23, 24;, 25 and '26, respectively, which are distributed along the length of the turbine.

Referring toFig. 2, each nozzle is disposed in tangential relation to the akis or circumference of the turbine,an :l 'isdisposed to-direct gaseous medium tangentially into an annular space, within the casing, such as the space between adjacent blade rings. The nozzle 23, as indicated in Fig. 2, directs gaseous medium into the annular space in front of the blade ring 27, whichthen followsgenerally a path indicated bythe arrows. It will: thus be seen that the gaseous medium injected tangentially through the nozzle causes a rotarycirculation ofjthe gaseous mediumwithin the turbine. Such a circulation, it will be apparent, maintains an even distribution of temperature around the en tire circumference.

The nozzles are preferably formed as shown in Fig. 3, in order to increasethe veloclty'of the gaseous'inedium- 1n ected into the turbine. A more effective circulation with a lesser quantityof gaseous medium thereby obtained. V

y In Fig. 1, the nozzles are shown in approximately the same relation to the circumference of the turbine. They may, however, be disposed in any other'relation, an alternative arrangement being shown in Fig. 1, wherein the position ofea'ch nozzle with reference to the circumference is shown diagrammatically by the positions of the arrows 21 22 23, 2 1, 25 and 26*, correspondingto the nozzles 21,22,

23, 24, and 26 of Fig. 1. In this arrangement, the nozzles are disposed successively around the circumference, producing a sort of spiral circulation.

As the gaseous medium moves from the high-pressure to the low-pressure end of the turbine, the amount thereof is increased by the gaseous medium from the successive nozzles, and all the gaseous medium is preferably exhausted through a valve 31 disposed in the exhaust/chamber.

From the foregoing, it will be apparent that I have improved schemes for distributing heat immediately after shut-down in order to shorten the starting period should it be desired to start up before thermalequilibrium is attained, the improvement, in particular, consisting of more effective circulation means.

While I have shown my invention in but one form, it will be obvious to those skilled in the art that it is not so limited, but is susceptible of various changes and modifications, without departing from the spirit thereof, and I desire, therefore, that only such limitations shall be placed thereupon as are imposed by the prior art or as are specifically set forth in the appended claims.

lVhat I claim is 1. A turbine casing having an annular space therein. and provided with means for cooling the same comprising 'a tangentiallydisposed nozzle therein, and means for in jecting a cooling medium therethrough into 3 the annular space within the casing.

2. A turbine casing having an annular spacetherein and provided with means for cooling the same comprising a tangentiallydisposed nozzle therein, and means for injecting a cooling medium through the nozzle into the annular space within the casing.

3. A turbine casing havingmeans for cooling the same comprising a nozzle therein disposed in a radial plane and at an angle to the radius, and means for injecting a cooling medium therethrough into the casing.

4. A turbine casing having an annular space therein and provided with means for cooling the same comprising means for inecting a stream or jet of cooling medium tangentially into the annular space within the interior of the turbine. r

5. A turbine casing having anannular space therein and means for cooling the same comprising means for injecting a stream or jet of cooling medium tangentially into the granular space within the interior of the turme. V

6. A turbine casing having means for cooling the same comprising means for injecting streams or jets of cooling medium tangentially into the interior of the turbine, said means lfieing distributed longitudinally of the tur-v 7. The method of maintaining uniform.

temperature in a turbine which consists of 8. The method of uniformly cooling the casing and rotor of a turbine which consists in injecting a stream of cooling medium into the casing tangentially thereof, for producing a whirling circulation of cooling medium therein.

9. The method of maintaining an even distribution of heat within a turbine when standing idle which consists in maintaining a whirling circulation of cooling medium therein.

10. The combination with a turbine casing having an annular space therein, of means for maintaining the temperature uniform around the circumferencethereof while the turbine is idle by providing a rotary or whirlin circulation of'gaseous medium in said annu lar space comprising a nozzle arranged to discharge tangentially into said annular space and means for in ecting gaseous media through said nozzle into said space.

11. The method of maintaining uniform temperaturearound the circumference of a turbine casing when standing idle which con sists in injecting a stream of gaseous medium tangentially into an annular space within the casing to provide a rotary or whirling circulation of said medium in said space.

In testimony whereof, I have hereunto subscribed my name this eighth day of April, 

